On May 10, 1960, UBC student Robert Murray checked a book out of the school’s library.
The book was a 1931 edition of Camping and woodcraft: Handbook for vacation campers and for travelers in the wilderness, which was originally written in 1906 by Horace Kephart.
Just shy of 65 years later, the 1963 UBC grad, who is now 83 years old and living in the BC Interior, finally decided it was time to return the book.
UBC librarian Susan Parker recently received the book in a Canada Post package from Murray along with a letter explaining his tardiness and a $100 cheque.
It also included a newspaper clipping from the July 17, 2014, edition of The Province that featured a story of someone returning the 1965 edition of the same book to the Prince George Public Library after 30 years.
“Most people return overdue books surreptitiously or anonymously. I’ve never received one this long overdue,” said Parker, who noted that most people start with an apology when meeting her for the first time.
“They always say, ‘It’s nice to meet you, and I’m sorry. They’ll admit to having a book that’s a few days or weeks late, but 64 years is a new record.”
The book didn’t just sit on a shelf or tucked away in a box over the past six decades, as the UBC alum said he re-read it multiple times and even credits it with potentially saving his and his son’s lives.
Lost on a hiking trip around 30 years, they were hit by an intense and long-lasting downpour and were forced to set up camp.
“My son wanted to put up our tent, and I said, ‘No, a tent’s no good in the rain,” said Murray.
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Instead, they followed the book’s advice and built a lean-to shelter, which reflected the heat from their fire to dry out the ground and keep them warm.
Murray had also learned from the book that wool is one of the few materials that keeps you warm even when wet, which is why he was okay in his wool pants and poncho as his son shivered while wearing jeans.
“I finally said, ‘Take off your clothes,’ and he just looked at me aghast,” Murray explained.
“You’re standing by the fire and the water in your clothes is evaporating and taking heat from your body as well. You’ll warm up better if you take off your clothes and hang them on the ridgepole to dry, and let the fire warm your body directly.”
An hour later, his son was dry and cozy, reading a book and eating stew, and they were able to comfortably survive the night before finding their way out of the wilderness the next day.
Murray added: “A few years later, my son then mentioned that small tents were no good in the rain, and I asked, ‘Who taught you that?’ He said, ‘You did!’”
Despite the book’s many adventures over the past six decades, Parker said it was returned in good condition and Murray was “an ideal library book caretaker.”
“I’ve seen books deteriorated more that were loaned out for much shorter periods of time, and even found a book where they had clearly used a piece of bacon as a bookmark,” she explained.
She also credited Murray with going the extra mile when returning the book, noting “he could have just mailed the book back without saying anything, but the fact that he shared his story was really special.”
Murray’s $100 cheque will be put toward other backlogged fees since the UBC library eliminated most overdue fines in 2020.
Parker hopes that Murray’s actions will encourage other folks to contact the library if they have overdue books.
“At the end of the day, we just want the books back,” she said. “We don’t want to punish people or feel that they cannot use the library because they have an overdue book.”
